Ise

Little is known of this poet - even her dates are uncertain (?877-?940)
- beyond the fact that she wrote passionate and witty poetry, and has
a number of poems in the Kokinshû,
later imperial anthologies and produced her own collection of poetry,
the Ise Shû, 'Ise Collection'. Sources suggest that she was
the daughter of Fujiwara no Tsugukage, who held among other positions
that of Governor of Ise, from whence she takes her name. Tsugukage was
the grandson of Fujiwara no Manatsu （藤原真夏）(774-830), the elder brother
of Fujiwara no Fuyutsugu （藤原冬嗣 ）(775-826), who had held the position of
Minster of the Left. By Tsugukage's time, however, his branch of the Fujiwara
family had declined in status, becoming mainly known for its scholarly
achievements and rising no higher in the court hierarchy than the position
of provincial governor.

Ise herself entered the service of Fujiwara no Atsuko （藤原温子）(Onshi),
the consort of Emperor Uda (867-931; r. 887-897), at about the age of
15, where she caught the eye of Atsuko's younger brother, Fujiwara no
Nakahira （藤原仲平）(875-945) and had a relationship with him. He, however,
eventually decided to marry elsewhere and abandoned her, after which she
was courted by his elder brother, Tokihira （時平）, whom she rejected. She
is then reputed to have borne a son to Uda, though the child died in infancy.
After Atsuko's death in 907, Ise remained in service to her daughter,
Princess Kinshi (均子内親王), who had become consort to an imperial prince,
Prince Atsuyoshi （敦慶親王） and, while living in the Prince's house, bore
him a daughter, around 912. As far as we know, she remained in the Prince's
household after his death in 930, when he was 44, and Ise about 56.

She is the most highly regarded woman poet in the Kokinshû,
as is evidenced by the large number of poems she has included in it, and
it appears that her contemporaries regarded her as at least equal in ability
to Ki no Tsurayuki.

Together with Ono no Komachi, she is one
of the premier woman poets of the early classical canon.